


your math skills are terrible, but your face is pretty great

by earlofcardigans



Category: Hockey RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-12-31
Updated: 2013-12-31
Packaged: 2018-01-06 23:09:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,168
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1112615
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/earlofcardigans/pseuds/earlofcardigans
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Promising his algebra teacher that he’d help tutor someone just to get a recommendation letter written is kind of bullshit, but Brandon did it because he still isn’t sure what else he’s supposed to do.</p>
            </blockquote>





	your math skills are terrible, but your face is pretty great

**Author's Note:**

  * For [IronPunk](https://archiveofourown.org/users/IronPunk/gifts).



> I absolutely have no idea how I ended up with a Brandons high school AU, but I know it's all Danielle's fault.

Brandon doesn’t like to be kept waiting. He’s patient enough. Or at least he tries, but he doesn’t like waiting on people.

His mom tells him that it’s because he’s a perfectionist.

Brandon is way too young to think about perfection, but he never disagrees with his mom.

He looks at the clock over the door again and taps his fingers against the table he spread all of his stuff on.

Promising his algebra teacher that he’d help tutor someone just to get a recommendation letter written is kind of bullshit, but he did it because he still isn’t sure what else he’s supposed to do. He normally doesn’t mind tutoring people. He’s good at math. But his parents want him to do…other things, and he’s trying to listen to Kaner and his ridiculously escalating “Canadian boyfriend” tales and trying to work out so he can do the other things and make his parents happy and be more rounded for college and still try to study for his own classes and his academic bowl.

Sometimes Brandon hates that he’s nice.

The door opens while he’s staring daggers at it and he knows that the person walking through is the guy he’s supposed to be tutoring. He had known the whole time, but it’s one of those things he’s tried to trick his brain into forgetting.

Yay.

He stands up and breathes in deep so he doesn’t immediately launch into a lecture about timeliness.

The guy stops right in front of him and taps the table twice. He sort of smiles at Brandon like he knows Brandon is going to be fussy. Brandon ignores it and tries to smile.

He totally fails.

“Are you Brandon Bollig?” Brandon doesn’t have to ask. He knows Bollig. Obviously. Everyone does. He walks around in his stupid letterman jacket with his stupid football friends and fails algebra regularly. Brandon doesn’t scoff. But it’s just barely.

“Yup. And you’re Brandon too.” Bollig smiles outright then, cheeky and kind of mean. “Brandon from algebra. Math Brandon.”

“Sit down, please. Stop saying my name.” Brandon sits too and immediately makes a rule to not look at Bollig too much. It should stick because Bollig has stupid hair. Well, Brandon tells himself that anyway.

Bollig throws his book on the table and sits in the chair opposite Brandon and smirks more.

Brandon is seriously going to have to rethink his college plans. He cannot tutor more people like this.

“I have two rules,” Brandon starts.

“Of course you do, Math Brandon,” Bollig interrupts him. “What is your last name? I’m not calling you Brandon.”

Brandon clenches his teeth. Unclenches. Breathes. “Saad. Now I have two rules.” Brandon holds up his finger. “One, be on time. I don’t have time to waste and neither do you. And two, bring everything you need with you every time. I’m not your personal backpack.”

“Is that it, Brandon Saad? I think I can manage. Except this time. I’m fresh out of pencils.”

“Anyway. Show me what your homework is. We’ll work through some of what your problems are and then discuss them later.”

“Later? You aren’t just going to work a few and see what I can do and then we bail?” Bollig looks confused, leaning back in his chair and eyeing the math book in front of him like it’s a gift from Hagrid.

“I’m not doing your homework for you. If that’s your great plan to pass algebra, get a new tutor.”

Brandon starts picking up his books because he’s not staying here for this when he has his own homework to do.

Bollig reaches out and takes the pencil stuck in Brandon’s book and taps it on the top a few times.

“No, dude. It’s cool. I’m just.” He shrugs like he doesn’t want to finish, and Brandon sits back and relaxes a bit.

“Not good at math?”

“Not good at school.”

Brandon steals his pencil back and flips open his notebook. He doesn’t look at Bollig when he says, “Well, I guess that’s why you’ve got me.”

Bollig sits up, straightens his jacket and says with false optimism that Brandon can kind of appreciate, “Let’s get to work then, Brandon Saad. Make me smart.”

And okay yeah. Brandon sort of wants to laugh.  
**

When Brandon had said later, he didn’t mean that night, but now they are sitting in the yogurt place next to the Mathnasium, and he’s watching Bollig pile as many toppings as he can in his cup.

“Do you even like yogurt?” Brandon looks in his cup. He has two toppings—rainbow sprinkles and gummy worms. Because this place’s gummy worms are solid red and he can appreciate that.

Bollig looks up with his pink plastic spoon hanging out of his mouth. “Huh?” He shifts the spoon around and it makes that gross grating noise on his teeth. “Yeah, dude. I love yogurt. It’s a great base for peanut butter cups and brownie bits.”

“You’re very strange. Do people tell you you’re very strange?” Brandon walks away and to a weird bubble table in the back. It’s the only thing he doesn’t like about this place. It has stupid bubble tables.

“You’re kinda like a grandpa. Did anyone ever tell you that?” Bollig dumps a ton of napkins on the table and is still grinning at Brandon.

Brandon rolls his eyes.

“So why am I meeting you at the Mathnasium? And why the hell is it called that?”

Bollig talks with his mouth full.

He’s gross.

Brandon still watches him.

“Because it’s open.” Brandon eats six gummy worms before he says, “And no one bothers me. And it’s close to this yogurt place.”

“We coming here every time?” Bollig looks like he doesn’t care one way or the other when Brandon glances at him.

“Probably not. I have soccer practice almost every other day.”

Bollig sits up a bit straighter. “Soccer? You any good?”

“Yeah, but.” Brandon waves his spoon around a bit. “I do this first. I have to get into college if I ever hope to get out of here.”

Brandon bites his lip and spreads his sprinkles around. He hadn’t meant to say that. It was better than talking to Kaner or Leddy though, because he won’t see Bollig again after about three weeks. He’ll be someone that never talks to him again.

Brandon is usually good at dealing with that.

“I should probably go to college.” Bollig shrugs.

“You should probably pass algebra first, man.”

Bollig laughs like he’s surprised. At what, Brandon has no clue. But he likes the sound of it. It kind of makes him feel like the red gummy worms do.

Probably just sugar rush.

“Yeah well I gotta go, dude. So.” Bollig stands up and takes the napkins with him.

“Do you homework and I’ll see you in the morning to go over it.” Brandon leans back in his seat to watch him.

“I have to see you tomorrow too?”

Brandon looks up at Bollig with narrowed eyes.

“Yeah, dude. And then as many times as it takes to get you to pass the next test.” Brandon can’t help but sound tired. Despite the yogurt, he’s pretty much over this already.

Bollig stands there with melted yogurt and napkins and looks at Brandon for a long time.

He says, “Right.” And it’s in such a ridiculous tone of voice that Brandon scoffs.

“It’s cool. See you tomorrow, Math Brandon.”

He tosses off a wave and Brandon watches him go.  
**

Brandon had told Bollig to meet him out front of the band hall before first period. He basically only chose there because no one would see him talking to a football dude. His friends don’t get to school as early as him. (Well, Kaner is lucky to get anywhere on time. At least he stays late to make up for it.)

So of course, Bollig doesn’t show, and Brandon is lurking around in front of band hall like he cares about cymbals and spit valves and weird shit band kids are always talking about.

He decides that he’s totally not mad. Not mad at all. Mad means he actually cares if Bollig does well or not, and the only reason he even needs a tutor is because he has to pass so he can play football. Brandon doesn’t care about football no matter how hard his dad tries to get him to. So he can write this whole thing off and turn in his tutor sheet to Mr. McCutcheon and tell him, ‘well I tried.’

He’s also totally not disappointed.

At all.  
**

“So like, last night I was on Skype with Jonny and he was telling me about how-“

“Oh my fucking god, Kaner, shut up about this supposed Jonny already. How much longer do we have to hear about him? I just want to eat lunch in peace for once.” Leddy snaps his teeth at Kaner, and they get into a stupid Jell-O fight that Brandon ignores.

“If he wants to talk about him and it makes him happy, you should let him babble, Leds. Just because you’re pathetic.”

“Who’s pathetic?” Bollig plops down opposite Brandon, interrupting Ben, and looking interested in their conversation.

Brandon says “no one” at the same time Kaner says “Leddy,” and he just drops his head. His day apparently can get weirder. Good to know.

“Which one of you is Leddy?” Bollig stacks his fists on the table and leans in like he actually cares. When Brandon rolls his eyes at him, he just waggles his eyebrows back like he isn’t a giant douchebag.

Kaner points around and introduces everyone, even Brandon. “And that’s Saader. He’s the quiet one today.”

Bollig switches his eyebrows to Kaner and says, “Yeah. We’ve met. Is he usually not the quiet one?”

“No, yeah he-“

“What do you want, Bollig?” Brandon doesn’t even really look at him.

He hates feeling like this.

Bollig shrugs. “Sorry about breaking rule number one earlier. I have the worst fucking time being on time for school. I think I’m getting an award for most tardies at the end of the semester. Should be fun.”

“You still didn’t answer what you wanted,” Kaner pipes in, talking with his mouth full of Jell-O because all of Brandon friends are tools. “Or how you know Saader.”

“We met yesterday. He was nice enough to help me kick algebra’s ass. And take me out for yogurt.” Bollig aims an almost angelic smile at him.

Brandon doesn’t say anything.

Ben gets nervous apparently because he goes, “Well that’s nice.” Then looks at Brandon and says into his lunch sack, “I guess.”

And because Brandon’s life is full of sunshine and joy, two of Bollig’s friends walk up and stand intimidatingly behind him. Well, one does. The other is about as tall as Kaner.

The short one folds his arms and says, “Boller.”

Bollig waves a hand over his head at him. “Anyway,” Bollig is still smiling. “Here’s my homework. And the other night’s that I missed. I know it’s before you but.” He slides an entire folder over to Brandon. “Also, my phone number is inside and I want you to text me a schedule. I work better with a schedule.”

Brandon looks up and then back down at the folder. He’s pretty sure it has ewoks on it.

“See you later, Saader.” Bollig fucking winks at him. Then he gets up and heads for the double doors, but he doesn’t get far and jogs back.

Kaner is still eating Jell-O like a cow, but everyone stops and watches him come back again.

He leans his hands on the end of the table and says, “Hey fellas. If you want, you can totally eat lunch with me and the guys for the rest of the week. I’ll introduce you around. It’ll be great.” He claps Brandon on the back and heads out again.

Brandon is still staring at the ewoks when Kaner gulps all his Jell-O and goes, “Okay what the fuck was that?”  
**

Brandon is sitting in the library annex after school on Friday and congratulating himself for having successfully dodged all his friends and Bollig for two days straight.

He doesn’t roll his eyes at himself, but he wants to because he’s even more pathetic than Kaner. He’s actually thankful for homework.

Bollig had texted him, of course. But not to ask about the schedule that Brandon had cooked up or why he was missing lunch, nope. He wanted to know if Brandon was going to the game that night.

And like. It’s not that Brandon hates football or even Bollig’s attempts to befriend him, but it’s not something he actively wants to join in. He’ll leave the social ladder climbing and football hangs to Kaner and Leds.

He has too much shit to do as it is without adding the stress of new friends. His dad told him that he’d get to start driving soon so he’d pass the test on the first try unlike his brother, and he has to study for that practice SAT and still make sure all Kaner’s lit stuff is stapled the right way so he doesn’t bomb the academic bowl.

Brandon shuts his laptop with a snap and grabs up his backpack.

He’s decided to say screw it because it’s Friday night and he can take a break.

 

Later when he gets home with pizza and Mountain Dew, he tells himself he’ll just check his Facebook once to see what the score is and then it’s video games until he falls asleep.

He may have to turn his phone off because he may be refreshing his school’s page constantly.

He may also pout when his mom laughs at him.  
**

Brandon doesn’t come out of his room for the entire day Saturday until his mom knocks and tells him he has to because there’s someone to see him.

He’s seriously confused because it’s Saturday and no one’s texted him and he doesn’t have any plans. His brother has hockey practice all day and Brandon totally planned this.

When he gets downstairs, he sees Bollig’s short friend sitting on the floor at the coffee table helping his mom with her jigsaw puzzle.

“Sup, Saader?”

Brandon zips up his hoodie and stares at the dude. “What are you doing here?”

“Brandon, be nice. Maybe get your friend some water or something.”

“I’m fine, Mrs. Saad.” The dude has totally charmed Brandon’s mom. It’s ridiculous. He gets up and stands right in front of Brandon and waits.

“Yeah okay.” Brandon heads toward the kitchen and doesn’t look to see if the guy is following him.

“Why are you in my house?” Brandon thumbs through the mail on the island.

“Nice to see you, too, jerk.” He sits on one of the stools and drums his fingers on the entire counter. It’s annoying.

“So sorry. Welcome to my house, would you like some water, what are you doing here?”

“You didn’t come to our game last night. Boller said he invited you. And I’m Shawzy, by the way.”

He is totally snotty but Brandon does not care, he is definitely caught up on the fact that he was apparently missed at a football game.

Brandon shrugs. “I’ve never been to one before.”

“Bollig never invited you to one before either.” He looks at Brandon like he was slow or something. Which, funny. “Are you rude to all people trying to be your friend, dude, because I gotta tell you. That’s a dumb fucking plan.”

He holds his hands up because he has no idea what to even do with that. “Like, I have no idea what’s going on.”

“Do you not like Bollig? Is that what’s going on?”

“What? I don’t really know him.” Brandon is sure he walked into some alternate dimension.

“You went on a yogurt date, man.” Shawzy stares at him.

“That wasn’t. We were studying. I’m a tutor.”

“Right. Look, Math Brandon. Next time Bollig says to be somewhere, be there. Because he might not look it, but he has lots of feelings, okay. So.”

“Okay.” Brandon says slowly because he has lost control of his life. There is no way Bollig was asking him out with that text. No way he was looking forward to Brandon going to that game.

Is there?

Shawzy pushes off the stool and comes around the counter to punch Brandon on the shoulder.

“Good talk. I gotta get out of here. I’m so fucking hungry.” Shawzy makes a really stupid face.

Brandon decides to say fuck it and says, “Well since you’re here, you want a sandwich?”

Shawzy laughs and punches him again.

 

“Do you punch everyone that tries to be friends with you?” Brandon asks around bites of his sandwich.

“What? I didn’t punch you. If I punch you, you’ll know it.” Shawzy smiles at him with his mouth full of bread and steals the chips off Brandon’s plate.

“Yeah sure, I’m finished. You can totally have my chips.” Brandon rolls his eyes when Shawzy laughs.

“Were you gonna eat that?”

Brandon just throws his crusts at Shawzy’s head when he starts choking because he’s laughing and trying to shove all the chips in his mouth at the same time.

“You’re cleaning that up, dude. Such an asshole move.”

Shawzy chokes more laughing and spills juice.

Brandon gives up. But he does smile. A little.  
**

Brandon is basically ready for school but dreading leaving so he sits on his bed and waits until he hears his brother’s footsteps thunder down the hall.

His phone pings a text message though, and he almost doesn’t answer it because Shawzy had texted him every hour since he left Brandon’s house the other day and it’s kind of exhausting. He’s going to have to ask Bollig how he’s friends with someone like that and if he has any tips. Also why he gave Shawzy his number because honestly.

But then his phone rings while he’s clicking and unclicking it locked, and it’s a horrible, tinny version of _I Want Candy_.

Kaner, then.

“I’m going to maim you. Stop fucking with my phone.”

“Ain’t no finer boy in town. I-iiii want candy.” Kaner sings at him.

“Never sing again.” Brandon tries out his new ‘no seriously I will kill you’ voice. So far, it isn’t working on his brother.

Kaner stops singing so Brandon is calling it a win.

“Dude, I got a car.” Kaner kind of squeaks and Brandon smirks to himself.

“Good for you.”

“No, man. Do you want a ride? I’m coming to get you. I’m just honking so tuck and roll.”

Brandon grabs all his stuff and heads out. “I think tuck and roll is when you push people out of your car.”

Brandon hears, “Don’t give him any ideas!” He thinks it’s Leddy but Kaner is laughing too hard and then hangs up on him.

He sticks his head in the kitchen and says to his mother, “Gonna catch a ride with Kaner.”

Then he stands on the porch until Kaner’s ugly, old-new blue Prius pulls up at the mailbox.

Leddy totally flips him off from the backseat. Brandon just slings his backpack at Leddy’s head, laughing.  
**

When Brandon gets to his locker, Bollig is leaning sideways into it. He looks like he hasn’t slept much and Brandon resists the urge to smile indulgently at him. He feels pathetic thinking it. But Sleepy Bollig looks cuddly and Brandon is only human.

He hefts his backpack and elbows Bollig. He wags his eyebrows at Brandon in greeting.

Brandon leans opposite and watches Bollig do his best impression of a kitten blinking awake.

“You’re early.” Brandon finds himself whispering. He sighs. He has to get past feeling like an idiot. Bollig is attractive objectively, even Ben says so (though Brandon is mostly sure he’s jealous of Bollig’s ability to grow a beard in three hours). And Brandon has seen his eyes crinkle when he laughs really hard.

Bollig shrugs, and Brandon pushes him over so he can get to his locker. Bollig just goes and still has his eyes closed when he says in a low rumble, “Wanted to give you my homework so you can look it over before tonight.”

Brandon nods into his locker, even though Bollig can’t see him through the door.

He leans around it though, shoves the ewoks folder at him, and says to Brandon all sincere, “Also wanted to apologize for Shawzy. I hear he crashed your weekend.”

Brandon thinks about saying thanks or that he doesn’t have to apologize for Shawzy because he’s cool, but he just goes, “No big deal.”

Bollig pushes off the lockers and smiles at Brandon. He is not sure he trusts that smile, but when he looks back, he knows he’d probably follow it anywhere. Brandon settles in to the feeling of always being slightly thrown off by Bollig. He can work with that more than being pathetic.

“Next time if he gets too rambunctious, just swat him on the nose with a rolled up paper. He’ll get the message.”

Brandon laughs at that because the image is kind of hilarious.

“So like a dog?” He shuts his locker and turns to Bollig.

“Exactly like a puppy,” Bollig tells him seriously. “He’ll respond better to it. Trust me.” Bollig shakes his finger at Brandon.

Brandon laughs again, and he has no idea where it comes from but he finds some courage and says, “Wanna walk me to class?”

Bollig throws his arm around Brandon awkwardly because of his backpack and winks at him right up close. Brandon rolls his eyes, but doesn’t shake him off.  
**

Brandon is going to be late. Because he had chores he couldn’t get out of and his homework to do, but mostly because when he went to check Bollig’s work so they could talk about it, he found some weird drawings of like, Tinkerbell and mermaids with axes and Bollig’s latest English paper.

He got way too caught up reading it. It’s compelling and well thought out, so clearly Bollig read the book and liked it. He is also clearly good at school stuff that’s not math.

The entire thing is weird and makes Brandon’s skin feel kind of tight and itchy.

 

When he gets to the Mathnasium, Bollig is already at the table they always sit at and chewing on the end of his pencil.

Well Brandon’s pencil. He remembers lending it to him. He can keep it now.

Bollig smiles at him around the pencil and says, “Timeliness, Math Brandon. Rule one, dude. I mean, I’m not a stickler, but I know other Brandons who are and like. You don’t want on their bad side.” He leans back in the chair and smiles bigger at him.

Brandon rolls his eyes and throws Bollig’s folder at him.

“Did I do okay? Because I cannot understand when there’s x and y. Is there going to be a ‘z’ any time soon? Because I don’t know how to deal with that shit, Saad, seriously.”

“No it will be okay. Let me show you where you messed it up.”

Brandon gets them through two assignments and half the study guide before he realizes he needs a break and the place is probably going to close soon.

“So that’s it for tonight.”

He starts shoving all his shit back in his bag and watches Bollig gather up the rest. Brandon must be extra tired or something because before he leaves, he turns back and says, “Can I ask you something, Bollig?”

Bollig shrugs and Brandon sits back down.

“I read your English paper. You left it in your ewoks folder.” Brandon hauls his bag into his lap and kind of hugs it to himself.

“Any good?” Bollig looks like he doesn’t care what the answer is, but Brandon has spent enough time with him and he’s pretty sure he looks embarrassed.

“Well yeah.” Brandon shrugs back. He leans his elbows on the table and just goes for it. “I mean, I might not have used some of those words, but like. You showed a complete understanding of the text and I liked your modern comparisons.”

Brandon stops and breathes. He hugs his bag a little closer and says low and quiet, “Why do you need a math tutor if your English Lit is that good?”

Bollig sighs and shoulders his backpack. “Want to get out of here?”

Brandon doesn’t say anything, just follows Bollig out of the Mathnasium.

 

“This is your favorite burger place?” Brandon gets out of Bollig’s truck and tries not to look around too much for fear he finds something unpleasant lurking.

Bollig crosses the front of the truck and knocks his shoulder into Brandon’s, leaves it there as they walk to the door. “Yeah, dude. Don’t knock it till you’ve tried it. Trust me.”

He opens the door for Brandon and Brandon decides he’ll have an open mind.

He’s pretty glad of that about fifteen minutes later when he’s got homemade cream soda and a bacon cheeseburger to die for.

He figures he can be pretty graceful when he wants so he says, “So yeah. It’s not that bad.”

Bollig smiles and kicks him under the table.

He’s got some weird burger with cheese everywhere and jalapenos that Brandon has been staring at for forever now.

“So,” Bollig starts and steals Brandon’s curly fries. “I know you’re not coming to the game this week because away, but how about the pep rally?”

He smiles at Brandon when he asks, like he knows Brandon’s going to say no and he almost doesn’t care. It looks strained and Brandon kind of hates it.

“I…” Brandon doesn’t know. He’s been to exactly one pep rally and that was because there was a substitute and she was not having any of his excuses. Usually Mr. McCutcheon lets him sneak to the library.

He lets another kid goof off in the choir room, so it’s not like Brandon is his favorite or whatever.

Brandon sighs. “I usually don’t go, but like.”

“You should come to this one.” Bollig nods at him. “Want some pie?”

Brandon thinks he nods. He’s not sure at what.

“This week, we’re dressing up like cheerleaders. I’ve got a curly wig this year and stockings. Hell if I know why. But Shawzy got the tiny cheerleader. The one he’s been crushing on? She’s helping him. So you should come just to see what kind of shit he ends up getting into.”

He leans his elbows on the table and smiles at Brandon some more.

Brandon thinks ‘fuck it’ and nods. “Okay. Sounds like a blast, but first.” He leans back and tries out that smirking thing on Bollig. It must work because he’s raising an eyebrow. “Tell me about your English Lit paper.”

“Dude. Just eat your pie.”

Bollig sticks his fork in Brandon’s pie and holds the bite up to his mouth. Brandon is so shocked and kind of confused that he eats and doesn’t remember to keep asking questions.

He eats the rest of the pie by himself and definitely, not at all watching Bollig eat his.

 

When Bollig rolls up in front of Brandon’s house, he puts the truck in park, grabs Brandon’s bag, and holds it hostage.

He doesn’t look at Brandon when he says, “English is easy. I like words. I liked that book we read. I’ve read other Shakespeare, but _Twelfth Night_ is my favorite so far. And maybe it wasn’t the best paper, but I didn’t want to fuck that up, too. So.”

Brandon makes a grab for his bag, but Bollig holds it away from him still and takes his hand instead.

So they are sort of holding hands in the middle of Bollig’s truck and Brandon is maybe freaking out because they went on a sort of date with the burgers and pie and everything, and nothing makes sense anymore. If it ever did.

Brandon decides to lean into the chaos and turns his hand over so that they are for real holding hands.

He watches Bollig’s face and sees him smile at the steering wheel, his cheeks a bit red.

Brandon huffs out a laugh. “ _Twelfth Night_ is pretty good. Have you read _As You Like It_?”

Bollig runs his thumb over Brandon’s knuckles and practically whispers. “Not yet. But I’ll definitely check it out.”

He glances up at Brandon once, takes a deep breath that Brandon immediately imitates, and lets go of his hand.

He hands Brandon’s bag back to him and says, “Come to the pep rally.”

Brandon nods as he gets out of the truck.

“And out with us on Saturday?”

Bollig’s cheeks are red again, and it makes Brandon’s breath a bit shuddery to think about him being shy or embarrassed.

He smiles though, because it’s also kind of cool that he might have that effect on someone.

He nods and says, “Yeah, Brandon. Okay.” Then he shuts the door and practically runs inside.  
**

Brandon has seen Bollig twice since he invited him to the pep rally and Brandon said he’d go even though he doesn’t care for it, but when he gets there and sits with Kaner, and everyone starts singing the fight song and Kaner starts laughing maniacally, Brandon is pretty sure something somewhere went wrong and because he was too busy staring all goofy at Bollig, he missed vital information.

Then Bollig and Shawzy and five or six other football dudes that Brandon sort of knows now head out in ugly cheerleader outfits, ill-fitting wigs and in Bollig’s case, stockings, and in Shawzy’s, a full face of really well done makeup.

Brandon wants to cry and then join in the hysterical laughter because apparently he’s a volunteer. He gets to dance around and make a fool of himself and watch Bollig’s face turn red under his clown blush and killer red lipstick that’s applied basically everywhere.

Brandon hates high school. And life. And Bollig. And Kaner.

When the entire thing is over, he lets Bollig hug him but he doesn’t say anything. He can’t. Shawzy is still dancing with Kaner and his tiny cheerleader almost-girlfriend and there are teachers and yearbook people laughing and taking pictures.

Bollig lets go of him, and Brandon finds the nearest exit and flees.

He has no idea where his books are, and he doesn’t care. The safest place for him is definitely the library annex, in the back, behind the ugly, old computers where no one goes anymore.

Brandon stays there until lunch.

He reads _A Tale of Two Cities_ and some Hawkeye comics because they are what’s hanging around on the table.

He only leaves for lunch because he needs his bag and his homework. He doesn’t want to see anybody, but he knows that no one really thinks anything is a big deal except him.

He gets to the lunch table that now includes three sets of people that he never thought would be friends and sits on the end. No one notices until Shawzy and Bollig round the corner and one of their other friends throws them apples and everyone starts applauding.

Shawzy does a twirl and takes a bow and Bollig turns a brighter red and laughs and shoves Shawzy.

He sits down across from Brandon and hands him the apple. Brandon twists it around and around until he pops the stem off, then he throws that at Bollig.

He’s still not in a space to have words enough to figure out what the fuck even happened and why to him.

Kaner looks at him and gives him the sad eyebrows, and Brandon shakes his head.

Bollig catches it and then skims his fingertips over Brandon’s hand and nods his head toward the door.

Then he leaves.

Brandon thinks he doesn’t have to follow him, but he sees Kaner and Ben with matching big eyes and knows he has to.

Ben is really good at the big eyes.

 

Bollig is leaning against one of the brick pillars, and Brandon can only see the tips of his sneakers. He slides around the other side and looks at Bollig.

His face is still red and he’s got lipstick still at the corner of his mouth that Brandon wants to wipe off. He looks resigned. Brandon knows what that’s about.

Before Bollig can say anything, Brandon tugs on the bottom of his jacket.

He takes a deep breath and Bollig won’t meet his eyes. “I’m not good at.” Brandon waves his hand in front of them.

“School? Because that’s a lie, Saader. Don’t lie.” Bollig turns and crosses his arms, leans his shoulder on the brick.

“Public? Life?” Brandon lets his head bounce off the brick. It doesn’t hurt as much as it should. “I just wish you would have told me.”

“I didn’t know you hadn’t been to a pep rally like that before. You don’t tell me lots of things, you know.” Bollig pulls Brandon’s head off the brick and puts his hood up over his head before settling him back where he was.

Brandon sighs.

The brick was pulling his hair.

“We don’t know each other that well.” He knows it’s a shitty excuse now. They spend as much time together as Brandon does with anyone else.

“We can change that. Things change every fucking minute, Brandon.” Bollig quits looking at him, getting the resigned face back.

Everything is so strange. Brandon doesn’t know how to navigate anything anymore. He kind of misses when things were soccer practice, academic bowl practice, homework and video games.

But then he’d have missed all this. And Bollig is right. Brandon doesn’t want to have missed all this.

“It’s okay.”

“You sure? Cos I gotta leave in like an hour and I don’t want you to be weird and in your head for the rest of the day.”

Brandon turns to look at him.

“Yeah.” He straightens Bollig’s collar and smiles at him. It’ll be funny later. Hopefully. In ten years, at least. “You want to. Text me? After school, I mean. While you’re traveling.”

“I kinda want to hug you again.” Bollig’s face is still red. “An apology?”

“There are people.” Brandon shuts up when Bollig shakes his head sharp.

“I don’t care. And besides I hug Shawzy all the time.”

Bollig gathers him up and Brandon shuffles in close like it’s all inevitable.

Maybe, he supposes, it is.

Bollig hugs him about like Bollig does everything else. Completely. Brandon can’t help but curl his hands in the scratchy back of Bollig’s jacket right over his name and hold on.

When he says, “But you don’t hug Shawzy like.” He’s really not sure what he wants to ask, but he needs to know something. Even after that spectacle of school spirit he was pulled into.

Bollig buries his nose in Brandon’s hair and says all muffled and quiet, “No. This is definitely completely different.”

Brandon tightens his grip, feels Bollig do the same around his neck and then let go.

He steps back and says, “I’ll text you when I get home.”

“I’ll make sure I’m doing some homework on the bus.” Bollig grins at him, crooked and kind of happier than Brandon’s seen.

Then he walks backward and Brandon turns the corner.  
**

He stays up late with his brother playing stupid video games and checking his school’s Facebook more than he wants to. His brother takes his controller away from him and kicks him off the couch and yeah. Brandon gets it.

Bollig had texted him up until the game started. Mostly about how he thinks he did on his algebra test and how he saw Brandon’s face floating in all the ‘x’s.

After Brandon gets up to bed and settled in with the stupid Marvel game Kaner put on his phone, he gets one more text from Bollig that says ‘ _im home. we lost. go out with me tmmrw just us???_ ’

He texts back five ‘y’s. And rolls over to smother his dumb smile in his pillow.  
**

“How did you get away from everyone?” Brandon deliberately looks at his menu like he doesn’t know he’s already going to order the chicken parm, like he didn’t tell Bollig this was his favorite place.

Bollig pulls the menu away from him anyway. He’s smiling when Brandon looks at him. That one smile that makes Brandon feel like it’s his. Ever since yogurt.

He rolls his eyes at himself.

“I told Shawzy I had a date.” Bollig shrugs. “He took care of it.”

Brandon knows his face is a great shade of red. He chooses not to care.

“So when Kaner texts me in a few hours, we’ll know who’s fault that is.” Brandon picks through the bread basket.

“You picked your friends there, babe. That’s all on you.” Bollig is totally laughing at him.

“I didn’t pick your friends.” Brandon tries for his ‘I hate you’ face and knows he fails when Bollig sticks his tongue out at him.

He spreads his hands wide at Brandon and says, “There’s no accounting for Shawzy, really. Feed him once, and you’re never rid of that mutt.”

Brandon laughs again and because he’s stupid, he goes, “This is easier than I thought it would be.”

Bollig nods at him gravely. “You make a lot of things difficult.”

Brandon hides behind his menu again.

“But not math?”

“No, Saader. Math you made much easier.”

Bollig pushes his menu down with his knife and leans in a bit. Then he whispers very seriously, “How are you at history? Because I’m bad with dates.”

Brandon laughs louder than he normally would in public and throws the rest of his bread at Bollig.

 

Bollig pulls up in front of Brandon’s house the same way he did after what Brandon has decided was their last date.

“Hey,” Bollig says to the side of Brandon’s face because he doesn’t want to look at him yet. Bollig squeezes his middle finger.

“Don’t forget you still have that chapter review in algebra.” Brandon wiggles his fingers out, feels his nails catch on Bollig’s thumb.

“Saader.”

He turns toward him but doesn’t look at him. “It’s for extra credit.”

Bollig scoots toward him a bit. Brandon sneaks a glance at him.

“Brandon.”

Brandon sneaks his hand into the sleeve of Bollig’s shirt and hides it there around Bollig’s wrist.

“I’ve never done this before.” Brandon’s voice is so low he can barely hear himself.

But Bollig just goes, “Yeah. I get that.”

“It’s technically our second date.”

Bollig huffs out a low laugh at that. “Third if you count yogurt.”

Brandon scrunches up his face and shakes his head. “Can’t count that one. I didn’t know about that.”

“It’s okay.”

“Yeah. I know.” And because Brandon is determined to not make everything difficult, he closes the distant between them, brings his hand up to Bollig’s face and kisses him.

They are both kind of surprised he did that really. But Bollig catches him and twists his fingers in Brandon’s hair to keep him there.

Brandon closes his eyes and let’s Bollig tilt his head and holds tightly to his wrist while he kisses him and feels the shape of his lips and his stubble and his small sighs.

Bollig opens his lips against Brandon’s and makes him do the same and everything changes. It’s all closer and hotter and Brandon moves in more, lets Bollig lick at his lips before he pulls back.

He moves his hand down from Bollig’s neck to his collarbone and rests there. Bollig still has a hand on the back of Brandon’s neck and leans in and kisses his forehead before hugging him close. Closer than before.

“Next time,” Bollig starts. His voice is low and rough and Brandon can’t deal with it. He looks up at him and dislodges Bollig’s hand from his neck so he picks it up, holds on.

“How bout not in my car?” Bollig squeezes their fingers together hard.

“How about you pass your algebra test first?” Brandon smirks at him.

Bollig laughs loud and breathless at that, then leans in and kisses him again.

Brandon holds on tighter.  
**

When he gets to lunch Monday, he’s totally prepared for things to be weird and the same. He’s not sure how he manages it, but he totally does.

Kaner had texted late Saturday. So had Shawzy. Brandon told them both to mind their own damn business and Kaner had just responded with Youtube links to that Ginuwine song.

Bollig is already there, talking with Ben about something apparently really funny going by Ben’s reactions. But when Brandon walks up after high-fiving Shawzy, Bollig scoots out the chair across from him with his foot and asks Ben to hold on a sec before he turns to Brandon.

He has a shit-eating grin on his dumb face and Brandon just says, “What?” Because seriously.

Bollig shrugs like no big deal, like the entire table hasn’t gone quiet or anything.

Brandon pulls the chair out further and starts pulling his lunch apart, but stops when Bollig takes it from him and passes him the ewoks folder.

He sits a bit taller and asks, all stern, “You pass?”

Bollig nods at the folder, and Brandon opens it.

Their teacher has written Bollig’s actual grade on the top plus his bonus points and the curve points and circled the big ‘B’ in red.

Brandon smiles at him and waves the paper around. “You made a ‘B’! That’s huge.”

“Yeah!” Shawzy yells down the table. “Maybe now I won’t get fucking killed when I have the ball. Way to stay on the team, douchebag.” He throws a napkin at them both, cackling.

“Shut it, Shaw. You’re the damn kicker.” Kaner puts him in a headlock and everyone at the table bursts out laughing and making fun of Shawzy.

Except Bollig.

“Got you something.” He looks past Brandon. “In the jacket pocket.”

Brandon looks around and sees that Bollig’s letterman jacket is on the back of the chair he’s sitting in. He feels his face flush and doesn’t look at anyone especially Bollig as he finds the note and reads it.

_Will you make out with me now that I’m a math genius?_  
_check one._  
___ my house __ your house_

Brandon laughs and shakes his head.

“You’re buying me yogurt first, asshole.” He puts the note in the ewoks folder and holds on to both.

 

Right before lunch is over, Bollig asks him if he wants to get out of there and gets all Brandon’s shit together for him.

He gets up to follow him out with just the ewoks folder in hand when he hears Kaner shout as loud as he probably can, the asshole.

“Hey Saader! Don’t forget your jacket, dude.”

Brandon doesn’t listen to any of his jackass friends whistle at him while he gets Bollig’s jacket off his chair and flees the room.


End file.
